Wild Heritage Horizons

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation is asking anyone who gets the chance to see a Moose to report their sightings online using a form located here. DEC is looking to monitor the Moose distribution and population across New York and this is a great way for the public to help them gather the data they need.

According to DEC, most of the Moose in New York are in the Adirondack Mountains but they can also be found along the eastern part of the state, near the Vermont and Massachusetts borders and even sometime in the Catskills and Southeastern New York.

This time of year Moose can be spotted in or near ponds and wetlands feeding on plants that grow in the water. Keep your eyes open while driving around dusk and dawn however because even though they are very large animals, they are a dark brown color and can be difficult to see on the side of the road in low light conditions.

How does the survey work?

If you follow this link, you will be brought to the first page of the survey explaining the survey and why DEC is looking to gather this data.

The next page asks some basic information including your name, address and your contact phone number. Page 3 asks when you saw the Moose, how many Moose, what gender(s) and age(s), and where you saw the Moose or Moose sign. You can also input what the Moose was doing when you saw it and the habitat you observed the Moose in, such as a Wetland or a Hardwood Forest. See below images DEC posted to help identify if the Moose you spotted is Male or Female.

Continuing to the 4th page you will be asked if you captured any photos of the Moose, and if so, they direct you to email your photos to Info.R5@dec.ny.gov. The final page will thank you for your help with this survey and ask you to submit your survey to the state.

Hopefully with public engagement the Department of Environmental Conservation gets enough data to make conservation decisions on the Moose population in New York. Have you seen a Moose in the Northeast recently? We’d love to hear your Moose stories below!